Garment



A. QUINN GARMENT Filed June 21, 1944 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Au 26,1947. A. QUINN 2,426,565

' GARMENT Filed June 21, 1944 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Patented Aug. 26, 1947 GARMENT Ada Quinn, Ogden, Utah; Robert N. Quinn, executor of said Ada Quinn, deceased, assignor to Quinn Garment Company, Ogden, Utah, a partnership composed of Robert N. Quinn and Horace A. Quinn Application June 21, 1944, Serial No. 541,397

16 Claims.

This invention relates to womens and childrens garments which are suspended over the shoulders of the wearer and provided with a back panel or the lik which is adjustable vertically according to the size of the wearer. For example, the invention may be embodied in adjustable aprons of the general type shown in my prior Patent No. 1,839,262, and for convenience is described hereinafter with reference to such garments, but it will be understood that the invention is not restricted to this particular use.

In Patent No. 1,839,262, the back panel of the apron is provided with a vertical strap which is stitched down to the panel at spaced points so as to provide separate loops, and the tie strings are inserted in any one of these loops at the choice of the wearer. However, adjacent loops are separated in the vertical direction only by the line of stitching so that the amount of adjustment obtained by using one 100p in preference to another is quite small and in many cases insufficient for satisfactory results. Moreover, the stitching tends to pull out in service, particularly in the the case of aprons and the like which are made of relatively light materials. Other arrangements of this same general type have been proposed, and these various proposals have met with varying degrees of success from the standpoints of convenience to the wearer, attractive and pleasing appearance, sufiicient adjustability and strength, etc., all of which are important to the success of the garment in the market.

Among the objects of the present invention are to provide an improved adjustable back construction which embodies a satisfactory degree of adjustability and combines strength and lon life with convenience to the wearer, attractive appearance, and economy of materials and simplicity of construction with consequent low cost. These and other objects will appear more specifically in the following description.

Several embodiments of the invention have been illustrated in the accompanying drawing in connection with an apron of the type mentioned above, but it is to be expressly understood that said drawings are for purposes of illustration only and are not to be taken as a definition of the limits of the invention, reference being had to the appended claims for this purpose.

In the drawings,

Fig. 1 shows an apron embodying the invention;

Fig. 1a is a detail view of the back construction of the apron shown in Fig. 1;

Figs. 1b and respectively are sections on the lines lb|b and lclc of Fig. 1a;

Fig. 2 is a detail view of another back construction embodying the invention;

Figs. 2a and 2b respectively are section on the lines Zw-Za and 2b-2b of Fig. 2;

Fig. 3 is a detail view of a further back construction embodying the invention;

Figs. 3a and 3b respectively are sections on the lines 3a-3a. and 3b3b of Fig. 3;

Fig. 4 shows a still further back construction embodying the invention;

Figs. 4a. and 4b respectively are sections on the lines 4a4a and ib-4b of Fig. 4;

Fig. 5 shows another embodiment of the invention;

Figs. 5a and 5b respectively are sections on the lines 5a5a and lib-51? of Fig. 5;

Fig. 6 illustrates still another embodiment of the invention; and

Figs. 6a and 61) respectively are sections on the lines 6d6a and lib-6b of Fig. 6.

The front of the garment may have any desired size and shape, and the garment extends over the shoulders of the wearer in any suitable manner-as by means of a yoke, shOlllder straps, etc., and then down the back, terminating in the loop construction hereinafter described. For purposes of example, Fig. 1 shows an apron I provided with shoulder straps 2 and suitable tie strings 3. The ends of the shoulder straps 2 are secured to and carry what may be termed for convenience a loop member the details of which are shown in Figs. 1a, 1b and 10, whereby the tie string 3 are inserted in any one of a plurality of vertically spaced loops at the choice of the wearer and are then tied as indicated in Fig. 1.

The loop member comprises a single piece of material 4 which is folded over at the bottom 5 to form a double thickness, the two upper ends being suitably secured at the top to the shoulder straps 2. The outer fold of the loop member tapers upwardly to a narrower width at the top than the inner fold and is split longitudinally throughout most of its length, part of the material being removed along the split to provide a pair of relatively narrow laterally spaced loop straps 6. Preferably the edges of the shoulder straps 2 and of the loop material 4 and loop straps 6 are bound with tape 1, which may be of contrasting color to provide a pleasing decorative efiect. As shown in Fig. 1b, the ends of the shoulder strap 2 are turned back and secured by a single seam 8 with the upper edge of the inner fold 4 and the ends of the loop straps 6, this seam preferably being bound with a continuation of the tape 1 of the outer edges of the shoulder straps 2.

The loop straps 6 are also divided vertically to provide for insertion of the tie strings 3 at vertically spaced points by means of a piece of material extending transversely across the outer sides of the loop straps and preferably having a substantially rectangular shape with substantial vertical extent to provide the desired adjustability. In the form shown in Fig. 1, this division is obtained by a rectangular strip 9 which secures the loop straps together over a central area of substantial vertical extent, said strip extending across the outer sides of the loop straps and being secured thereto by upper and lower horizontal stitchings it, the ends of the strip being secured under the binding tapes '5 along the outer edges of the loop straps as indicated at l I. For decorative effects the strip 9 may be of a different color than the inner fold 4 and loop straps 6, preferably matching the tape l. n

The vertical extent of the said area, i. e., of the strip 9, should be on the order of an inch to an inch and a half. With this construction either the portions of the loop straps above the strip 9 or those below the strip may be used for thetie strings, these portions being separated by the substantial vertical extent of the strip to provide a correspondingly large adjustment of the garment. Moreover, the strip 9 acts asa reinforcement over the central area provided for adjustability and of itself bears a large part of the pull against the tie strings when the garment is being worn, thus relieving the stitchings ill.

Also the loop straps 6 are separated from the inner fold l of the loop member throughout the entire vertical extent of the latter, i. e., from the bottom fold line tothe transverse tape 1 and seam 8 at the top of the loop member. This construction enables the wearer to separate the loop straps from the innerfold easily for insertion of the tie strings, which is also facilitated by the lateralspacing of the loopstraps along the vertical center-line. The narrower outer fold enables the wearer to distinguishthe folds by the sense of touch and to insert the tie strings without fumbling, and the taper of the outer fold also enables the wearer to distinguish readily between the upper and lower pairs of loops. On the other hand, the greater width of the inner fold t .and of the fold 5 at the bottom of the loop member preventsit from doubling over when the strings are tied and. provides body to maintain its shape and also its position on the body of the wearer. 7

Instead of forming the loop member by folding over a single length of material at 5 as described above, it may be desirable in some instances to make the inner and outer thicknesses of the loop member from separate pieces of material as illustrated in Figs. 2, 2a and 2b. The shoulder straps l2 are secured at their lower ends to the inner thickness or fold iii of the loop member whereas the outer thickness or fold M comprises a separate piece of material the lower edge of which is secured to the lower edge of the inner fold l3. Preferably the tape along the outer edges of the shoulder straps is continued around the edges of the inner fold l3 of the loop member, forming at the same time a bottom seam l6 between the loop folds l3 and IA. The outer fold I4 is split longitudinally as above described to form the loop straps l1 and the upper ends of these loop straps together with the upper edge of the inner fold l3 are secured to the lower ends of the shoulder strap l2 by the seam l8 which is preferably bound with the tape H3.

The loop straps I! are then secured together by a rectangular strip of cloth l9 similar to the strip 9 described above and by the horizontal stitchings and the vertical stitching 2| of the binding tapes l5. In some cases it may be desirable for the stitchings Z0 and 2| to extend through the inner fold 53, s illustrated in Figs. 2, 2a and 2b, although it is usually preferable to strip to the loop straps.

have the loop straps free from the inner fold throughout their entire length as described above in connection with Fig. 1 and as shown in the other figures hereinafter described.

It is not necessary that the loop member be attached to the ends of shoulder straps as described above, nor is it always necessary to divide the outer fold of the loop member longitudinally. In Figs. 3, 3a and 3b, for example, the loop member comprises a single folded piece of material having a wide inner fold 22 and a narrower outer fold 23, but the outer fold is not split longitudinally. In this case a pair of vertically spaced loops are formed by means of a rectangular strip ofv cloth 24 similar to those described above and secured to the outer fold 23 by the horizontal and vertical stitchings 25, the ends of the strip being secured with the edge bindings of the inner fold 22. This loop member is secured in a manner similar to that described above to the lower edge of a back panel 26 which depends from the neck yoke, shoulder straps, etc., as the case may be. In the form shown, the upper edge of the panel is 25 joined to shoulder straps 21.

Figs, 4, 4a and 4b illustrate another construction in which shoulder straps 28 are connected to an intermediate panel 29 which carries a loop member made from a folded single piece of material and comprising inner and outer folds 3|] and Si. As shown in Fig. 4, the loop member may be narrower than the panel, instead of being of the same width as illustrated in Fig. 3, and the outer fold 3| is preferably narrower than the inner fold 30. The outer fold is split longitudinally to provide a pair of loop straps 32, but in distinction to Figs. 1 and 2, these loop straps are not laterally spaced. Fig. 4 also shows a further variation in the means used to secure the loop straps together, the rectangular strips of cloth described above being replaced by a rectangle of binding tape 33 secured by stitching 34 to the outer sides of the loop straps.

Figs. .5, 5a and 5?) show a further variation in the manner of attaching the transverse dividing The loop member comprises an inner fold 35 and an outer fold which is split longitudinally as in Fig. 1 to provide laterally spaced loop straps 36 the upper ends of which are secured to shoulder straps 3? in a manner corresponding to Fig. 1. The loop straps 35 are secured together by means of a rectangular strip of material 38 similar to the strip 9 of Fig. l, but matching the material of the loop member with edge bindings 39 matching the edge bindings 50 of the loop member. The horizontal stitchings ll merely secure the bindings 39 to the strip 35 and do not extend through the loop straps 36, said strip being secured only at its ends which are caught under the edge bindlngs 45 of the loop straps. as indicated at 42. This construction has the advantage that the entire operation of making the loop member can be performed solely on the binding machine.

The construction shown in Figs. 6, 6a and 6b embodies the advantage discussed above in connection with Fig. 5, but the ends of the transverse strip are secured under the edge bindings of the inner fold and the strip is not attached at all to the loop straps. In these figures, the loop member is secured to shoulder straps 43 and comprises a single piece of material folded at the bottom to provide the inner fold M and the outer fold 45, the latter being split longitudinally to provide the loop straps 46. The transverse strip 4'! and. edge bindings 48 are similar to the strip 38 and bindings 39 of Fig. 5, but the ends of this strip 41 are secured under the edge binding 49 of the inner fold 44. The edge bindings 48 are secured to the transverse trip 41 by th horizontal stitchings 50, but this stitching does not extend through the loop straps 46 or inner fold 44 of the loop member. Hence the loop straps 4'6 and the strip 41 are free of the inner fold 44 as described above.

It will be understood from th foregoing description that the invention is capable of a wide variety of embodiments and is not limited to those particularly described above and illustrated in the drawings, since others may be devised without departing from the spirit of the invention and may be considered desirable by those skilled in'the art from the standpoint of appearance,.workmanship, etc. .For example, the arrangement of the rectangular strip used to form the vertically spaced tie string loops is subject to considerable variation as indicated by the foregoing examples. Further the loop member may be secured to shoulder straps or to an intermediate panel which may in turn be secured to the shoulder straps or to a yoke as shown in my prior Patent No. 1,839,262 mentioned above. The loop member is preferably made from a folded single piece of material, but not necessarily as indicated by the above examples. The outer fold of the loop member is preferably narrower than the inner fold, as this facilitates the insertion of the tie strings at the back of the wearer where the loop member cannot be seen, and when the outer loop is split longitudinally, the loop straps are preferably spaced laterally, but again these features are not essential. Preferably the outer part of the loop member, whether a single strap or spaced parallel straps, is free of the inner fold from top to bottom of the loop member, but as indicated by Fig. 2 this is not necessary in all cases.

It will also be understood that the invention is not limited to aprons but can be used with other garments such as sun suits for women and children, womens and childrens aprons and pinafores, skirt suspenders, and the like.

Other variations from the particular examples described above will be obvious to those skilled in the art, and hence reference should be had to the appended claims for a definition of the limits of the invention.

What is claimed is:

1. A garment of the class described having tie strings adjacent the waist of the wearer, shoulder supporting means, and a depending back section comprising a loop member to which said tie strings are adapted to be secured, said loop member comprising an inner fold adjacent the body of the wearer and an outer fold attached to the inner fold at its top and bottom edges only, said outer fold being of substantially the same width as the inner fold at its bottom edge but tapering upwardly to a substantially narrower top edge, and a separate piece of material secured to said loop member and forming a substantially rectangularly shaped strip of substantial vertical extent which extends transversely across said outer fold adjacent its central section and divides said outer fold into upper and lower loop portions for said tie strings above and below said strip and spaced apart by the vertical extent of said strip.

2. A garment as defined in claim 1 wherein said back section comprises a back panel depending from said supporting means and said loop member is attached to said panel.

3. A garment as defined in claim 1 wherein said supporting means comprises shoulder straps which terminate at and are secured to said loop member.

4. A garment as defined in claim 1, wherein said outer fold is split longitudinally above and below said strip to provide a pair of upper p portions and a pair of lower loop portions.

5. A garment as defined in claim 1, wherein the inner and outer folds of said loop member comprise a single piece of material doubled over at the bottom of said member.

6. A garment as defined in claim 1 in which the rectangular strip is attached to the outer fold and has its ends secured to said inner fold adjacent the edges thereof.

7. A garment as defined in claim 1 in which the outer fold is split longitudinally to provide a pair of upper loop portions and a pair of lower loop portions, said rectangular strip having its ends secured to said inner fold adjacent the edges thereof.

8. A garment as defined in claim 1 in which the outer fold is split longitudinally to provide a pair of upper loop portions and a pair of lower loop portions, said rectangular strip having its ends secured to said inner fold adjacent the edges thereof but having no connection with said outer fold.

9. A garment as defined in claim 1 in which the outer fold is split longitudinally to provide a pair of upper loop portions and a pair of lower loop portions, said rectangular strip having its ends secured to the outer edges of the split sections of said outer fold.

10. A garment as defined in claim 1 in which the outer fold is split longitudinally to provide a pair of upper loop portions and a pair of lower loop portions, said rectangular strip having its ends secured to the outer edges of the split sections of said outer fold and having its upper and lower horizontal edges secured to said split sections.

11. A garment of the class described comprising a body portion having tie strings adjacent th waist of the wearer, shoulder supporting means, and a depending back section comprising a loop member to which said tie strings are adapted to be secured, said loop member comprising a single length of material doubled over at the bottom and shaped to provide a relatively wide inner fold adjacent the body of the wearer and a relatively narrow outer fold havin its upper end connected to said inner fold, said outer fold being split vertically to provide a pair of loop straps and said straps being free of said inner fold throughout their entire vertical extent, and material forming a substantially rectangular strip having substantial vertical extent which extends transversely across the outer sides of said straps substantially midway of their vertical extent, thereby dividing said outer fold into a pair of upper loop portions and a pair of lower loop portions respectively above and below said strip and spaced apart by the vertical extent of said strip.

12. A garment as defined in claim 11, wherein the ends of said rectangular strip are secured to the edges of said inner fold.

13. A garment as defined in claim 11, wherein the ends of said rectangular strip are secured to the edges of said inner fold, but said strip has no connection with said outer fold.

14. A garment as defined in claim 11, wherein the ends of said rectangular strip are secured to the outer edges of said straps.

15. A garment as defined in claim 11, wherein the ends of said rectangular strip are secured to the outer edges of said straps, the upper and loweredges of said strip being secured to said straps.

16. A garment of the class described having ti strings adjacent the waist of the wearer, shoulder supporting means, and a depending back section comprising a loop member to which said tie strings are adapted to be secured, said loop member comprising a single length of material doubled over at the bottom and shaped to provide a relatively wide inner fold adjacent the body of the wearer and an outer fold which tapers upwardly from th bottom with its upper narrower end secured to said inner fold, said outer fold being attached to said inner fold at its top and bottom edges only, and a separate piece REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 2,235,332 Quinn Mar. 18, 1941 2,143,152 Dosberg W Feb. 21, 1939 1,839,262 Quinn Jan. 15, 1932 

